Lawmakers won't commit to income tax hike to close budget hole

Wednesday

Illinois may be headed toward massive budget cuts, as momentum to raise the state income tax to close a huge budget hole appears to be faltering.

Illinois may be headed toward massive budget cuts, as momentum to raise the state income tax to close a huge budget hole appears to be faltering.

Democrats in both the House and Senate said they believe Republican votes will be needed if income taxes are going to be raised. So far, GOP members are not inclined to do that.

Even Sen. Larry Bomke, R-Springfield, said he isn't sure he can support an income tax hike even if it will help blunt cuts to state services.

"I recognize how that will affect the local economy, but it's very difficult to vote for an income tax increase given the economic times we are faced with," Bomke said.

Although Democrats control 37 seats in the Senate, Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, said they can't muster the 30 votes needed to raise the income tax.

"I think we need some help from the Republicans," Cullerton said. "I've asked that Republicans not act like Republicans and Democrats not act like Democrats."

In other words, Cullerton said, Democrats need to agree to budget cuts and Republicans to a tax increase to close the budget gap estimated at more than $11 billion.

House Democrats face a similar situation. They have enough seats to pass the income tax increase by themselves, but don't seem inclined to do it. Democrats met behind closed doors Tuesday to discuss raising income taxes, and to consider the budget cuts necessary if more revenue isn't raised.

"We didn't do a headcount, but there are nowhere near 60 votes (needed to pass it),” said Rep. Jack Franks, D-Woodstock. Franks is against raising the income tax.

House Democrats were given a long list of spending items and their cost. They were then asked to select the ones they wanted to see funded and the ones they were willing to see cut.

Rep. Frank Mautino, D-Spring Valley, said lawmakers essentially were given the job of figuring out how to spend $3.8 billion of revenue on $11 billion worth of programs. Just three items on the list - prescription drug assistance, help for the developmentally disabled and state employee group health insurance - cost nearly $4 billion.

Cullerton said he plans to have the Senate also review spending.

"We'll look at state programs we have funded in the past and see if there are areas we can cut first," Cullerton said.

Diverting money from pension payments will help ease the cuts, as will raising taxes, but it will not mean the state will can avoid all cuts, Mautino said.

"There is a realization that even if you skip the pension payment and raise the income tax, you can't get enough money to fill the hole," he said.

Sen. John Sullivan, D-Rushville, said there was "definitely some discussion" about lawmakers crafting a short term budget that would cover state spending for only part of the budget year.

"It's an option on the table," Sullivan said. "Whether it's prudent or not, I don't know."

Cullerton, though, was cool to the idea.

The House has already approved a series of budget bills - worth about $16.9 billion - that will cover the cost of basic state operations, like state worker salaries. Cullerton said the Senate will vote on those bills shortly.

Prominent national conservative Grover Norquist and other anti-tax groups railed against Gov. Pat Quinn's proposed income tax increase Tuesday at a Statehouse news conference and called for a 10 percent cut in government spending.

Norquist, who is president of the group Americas for Tax Reform, has said he wants to cut government to the point where he could "drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub." He says the state's deficit is a problem for politicians, not taxpayers.

"You don't have a $9 billion deficit, you have a $9 billion overspending program," he said.

Other estimates put the deficit closer to $11.6 billion.

Andrew Thomason and Eric Naing contributed to this report. Doug Finke can be reached at (217) 788-1527 or doug.finke@sj-r.com.

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